Dust and Decay
by Springle
Summary: The restaurant has closed down for some time, leaving the animatronics in dust and rust. When two of them, Freddy and Foxy awake to find their world they knew no longer exists, how will they possibly survive... And live a happy ever after... (Cover image by: haifisch-chan on Tumblr)
1. Sudden Awakening

The restaurant lay silent in nothing more than dust and darkness with little sound but the rhythmic dance of rain upon the roof outside. All the lights were off, leaving the animatronics in darkness, though they themselves did not know this fact, for they were deactivated. Freddy, Bonnie and Chica, frozen on stage, instruments in hand and eyes looking forever onwards but not seeing. Foxy, for his part, remained in Pirates Cove like the recluse he had always been, mostly due to being 'Out of Order', but even when it came to roaming at night, he would have chosen to hide away there. Well, he didn't have much choice in the matter, for he too, was deactivated. Gathering dust as the other three.

Peace, it seemed, had finally washed over the tired restaurant, for its walls had seen many days of screaming children, food-fights and singing animatronics. Good days those were.

Without so much as a warning, at least, they received no warning of this, a section of wooden beaming began to creak, eventually breaking away from the rest of itself, crashing down upon the edge of the stage. That was it. That loud noise, sudden shock, was all that was needed. Freddy stirred from his seemingly eternal slumber, slowly wakening to the darkness around him. He froze, listening out for anything that might be near. Perhaps it was luck, that Foxy had also heard this sudden commotion and thus, too woke from deep sleep.

The bear remained frozen on stage, straining his eyes against the shadows rather uselessly before gaining the voice to speak out.

"H-Hello? Is anyone there?" His voice trembled slightly, much unlike the strong singing voice he was once renowned for.

Foxy twitched, taking a moment to reconfigure and adjust to the darkness. The voice struck him as slightly odd, though he could not deny it was Freddy. "Ye'?" He called out in his thick pirate accent as he parted the curtains of the cove.

"Foxy? Is that you?" Freddy asked. He knew damn well who it was, but something about the dark, the silence... It threw him off edge and scrambled his thoughts but through all of this, he could not deny the sheer relief that washed over him upon hearing that accent from across the room.

"Aye it be me Fred. Wha's goin' on 'ere?".

"I-I'm not sure... Hey, can you hit the lights?".

Foxy puzzled over this. Freddy had always preferred the dark, lurking about in shadows to scare the night-guards and such but to actually request the lights be turned on? Most peculiar... Nevertheless, the Fox could not disobey as he made his way over to the switch. He glanced across the dining-hall, catching sight of Freddy stood on stage with what appeared to be... No. It couldn't be. Was he? Afraid? His expression certainly seemed to clarify this.

"Turnin' 'em on now Freddy". The Fox flicked the switch, bringing the light down upon the room, chasing away the shadows to the corners.

Freddy practically sighed with relief as he began to look about the once famous restaurant, now filthy and somewhat tattered. Cups littered the floor and party hats adorned the tables rather untidily, much to the bears' annoyance. He himself, was, fair to say, a little OCD when it came to such details. Luckily, whatever wasn't cleaned by the cleaners at closing time, was sorted himself when allowed to roam at night. The darkness and poor quality camera surveillance equipment, hiding him from sight as he tidied, completely unbeknownst to whichever night-guard had the misfortune of the shift that night. But, the cameras' did not move, nor did the little red light, which Freddy had hated so much, even flash up at all. All the cameras, were dead.

"What happened here?" He spoke at last.

Foxy approached the stage, shaking his head before freezing, his eyes locking onto the animatronics upon the stage. "Uh, Freddy?" He raised his brow, gesturing behind the bear.

"What is it? Something wro-" He cut mid-sentence, shocked at the sight either side behind him.

Bonnie, stood motionless, caked in dust... His entire top half of his face, missing. Torn away, leaving little more than the endoskeleton behind and a few severed wires. The sight stunned Freddy to silence, until he caught sight of Chica to his right. The chicken, once rather cute and yellow, appeared a dirtied brownish tone, both her hands had been torn away, leaving a mess of dangling wires and warped metal. And that, wasn't the worse part. Her entire HEAD was missing. Gone. Nothing there, not even the endoskeleton remained.

Freddy covered his mouth, taking a step back from the scene, dazed by the sight. Had Foxy not pushed the bear back, he would surely have stepped right off the edge.

"How did- Who, who did this!?" Freddys' voice seemed to crack slightly, clearly upset. Bonnie and Chica were his partners, his friends. Family. To see them this way... It broke his heart. Or whatever an animatronic could consider a heart.


	2. Eyes and Time

Foxy frowned at Freddy before joining him up on the stage, wandering over to flick on the lightswitch. Although he could see perfectly fine himself in the dark, it allowed Freddy to see much better. Perhaps it was not such a good idea, as in the light, they appeared far worse.

"I don' know Freddy... They look worse than you. Seems you got it lucky...".

Freddy shook his head. He knew something wasn't right about himself, but as of yet, had not been able to figure out what. Everything seemed so... Off... But right now, Chica and Bonnie were his main concern though how exactly he could help was far from clear.

He glanced to Foxy. In truth, the Fox had seen better days himself.

The holes in his suit had increased slightly in size, the edges beginning to fray and wear away from age and dust. As always, the Foxes legs remained stripped to nothing more than mere endoskeletal components. Although it didn't affect his movement as such, it had always been somewhat of an eye-sore, to see him in ruin.

"How... How long has it been... Since we performed last..." Freddy whispered, tightening his grip on the microphone slightly. At least he still had that... And his hat of course. Though these weren't at all helpful to their current predicament, it still gave him some kind of reassurance having his signature items... The Fox had his hook... Not that he had much choice, being attached to his arm and all.

Foxy tapped his chin with said hook, an action he always seemed to do when thinking. In truth, Freddy had always found that motion quite amusing, watching the Fox frown now and then, deep in thought whilst his ears flicked back and forth. Even now, Freddy found himself smiling at it. A small pick-me-up, even in their current predicament.

"I don' suppose they be lettin' us work in this condition... Could be a few weeks since we las' performed..." He replied at last. In truth, he didn't really know what to say and Freddy picked up on this. "It be hard ta say... But at least I be havin' you fer company".

Damn if Freddy could blush right now, his ears however, did flicker to the sides. Fortunately, the Fox didn't seem to notice this.

"Bringing back to the subject... What do we do now? There's no guard, at least, I haven't seen any lights on the camera's...".

Foxy had never really paid much attention to the camera's, other than the one outside his cove of course. Freddy on the other hand, would always watch them like a hawk.

"We could be seein' if there be any parts fer yer eye" He gestured with his hand, the hook having returned to tapping on his chin.

In truth, Freddy had been trying his best to ignore it, but being blind in one eye was a difficult thing to boycot. At least Foxy had been somewhat designed to see through one eye... He on the other hand, was not...

"You know much about repairing?"

Foxy blinked. "Uh... No...".

"...Didn't think so".

"Like ye know much more than me..."

"I can hardly repair my own eye..."

The two simply stared at one another for a moment before snapping to their senses, Foxy being the first to break the silence that had befallen them.

"Well, I know one thing we could be doin' ta' pass the time..." Foxy grinned, edging slightly closer to the bear with a devious grin.

Freddy blinked, eyeing Foxy with caution. They'd never really 'hung out' before so he didn't quite know what to expect from the pirate. The hook by itself was a reason to be nervous in itself. In truth, it had always made him wary, given the fact the gang on stage rarely saw the fox leave his cove except for the soul purpose to torment the guard, but even that had been a rare sight. "And... And what's that...".

"This..." Foxy grinned...

 **Yes yes I know, short chapter and still no actual action... Don't worry, it's getting there. This was derived from a roleplay so, obviously, it'll take some time. Plus, writers block... Such a pain. But, that ending though...**


	3. Of Cat and Mouse

Without warning, Foxy leaned closer... He raised his hand... And pinched Freddy on the nose, causing it to squeak with its usual fashion. The fox barely contained a roar of laughter as he leaped from the stage and sprinted off down the West Hall, towards the office.

Freddy stood for a moment or two, blinking as he processed what had just occurred. He crossed his eyes to look at his nose with a frown, a slight growl forming before he turned his attention to the darkened hall.

"...Try that again and I'll boop yours!" He waved his fist towards the hall, unknowing whether the fox could even see him or- Well... He obviously saw, for the laughter merely grew louder.

"Ya coul'n' catch me if ya tried!" Foxy grinned, watching Freddy from the safety of the darkened corridor. In many ways he'd always respected Freddy... Though he wasn't entirely sure why as such... But a little teasing was too good to pass up.

Before he registered it, Freddy had stepped from the stage, something he rarely did and began making his way over. Foxy deadpanned for a second before jolting back to his senses, retreating to the far end of the hallway, up by the office, then turned to watch the bear approach.

"You can't hide down there forever!" The bear growled, stumbling slightly through the doorway to feel his way along the wall, slowly but surely advancing towards the Fox who apparently, wasn't as trapped as the bear had originally thought.

The Fox grinned, his white teeth, along with a few gold ones glistened, catching the light from the dining hall, illuminating his wicked smile. Without hesitation, Foxy bolted into the office. From here, he could simply close the door, lock himself in from the agitated bear but then, where would be the fun in that? No. He ran straight on through and along the other hallway before the other bear had even realised the Fox had scarpered.

"Try again matey!" Foxy called, grinning like a wicked clown from the end of the hallway behind Freddy who merely deadpanned, freezing momentarily in his step to give a low and quiet growl of annoyance before turning. Despite the dark, he could clearly make out the silhouette of the Fox at the end of the hall, flicking its tail back and forth, simply waiting for him to make a move.

'Slippery bastard' He thought, rolling his eyes whilst shaking his head. Rather than give chase, Freddy moved slowly into the office, carefully making his way across the small room to flick the switch, closing the right door before re-emerging from the left.

"Your luck won't last forever..." He grumbled to which Foxy laughed.

"Ain't be a thin' of luck, yer simply too slow!"

True, the old bear wasn't exactly nimble... More than a few times he'd bumped into a chair, stood on someone's foot and knocked trays from a waitress' hands... Wasn't his fault he was built the way he was... Freddy grumbled some more. He knew he was heavy and bulky, he'd accepted those facts, but surely the Fox didn't have to point it out...

"I'll show you who's slow..." He murmured before walking back along the corridor, using the walls to guide himself.

Foxy's tail wagged excitedly as he watched the bear approach. He'd always liked playing tag and other games with the kids back when the restaurant was in full-swing. When pirate's cove was more than a simple decoration lost to dust and decay... (Yes, title in the story because why the hell not!).

"Keeeeeeep uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuup" Foxy jeered, making deliberately slow movements and voice to match. Freddy for his part, merely grinned, for he had an idea what would happen next.

The Fox wagged his tail as Freddy drew nearer, almost to the point the bear could simply reach out and grab him before making his move. With an energy, goodness knows where from, Foxy jumped, practically leaping from the corridor before making a headlong spring back up to the stage.

"Too slow, try again next time!" Foxy called.

Freddy rolled his optics with a low grumble. He knew the time was coming so playing it off with the waiting game was his only option. Admiteddly, this tactic always made the rewards that much sweeter, like feigning ignorance to the poor night guard all that time ago. This would be no different. The one thing he didn't like, was being made a fool in the process...

"You'll get yours..." He murmured, stalking back into the dining hall, growling as Foxy made a blatant dash right past him, within arms distance in fact, into the opposite hallway.

It was only a matter of time... 3... 2...-

CLANG.

The all too familiar sound of metal on metal and the undeniable yelp of the red fox. No doubt he'd smacked head-first into the metal door.

Foxy, for his part, lay sprawled flat on his back, shaking his head slightly in a dazed state, twitching now and then before sitting up and holding his muzzle with a whimper. Almost a sight to be sympathetic... Buuuuuuut...

Freddy loomed, steadily making his way down the hall towards the floored fox who for better or worse, had some sense knocked into him. "Fuck... Tha' be odd... It be open las' time I be in there..." He pondered only to meep as a furred paw gripped the scruff of the torso's rim around the neck, pulling him to his feet to meet Freddy scowling at him.

"I tried again... Looks like I won a Fox this time" He smirked to which Foxy could only whine sheepishly. "But... Try that again..." The bear suddenly raised its other paw to pinch harshly on Foxy's nose. "And I bite your nose off".

Foxy yelped, squirming slightly before noting Freddy's stillness, his one blue eye and pin-prick of white from the damaged endo-skeletal eye staring back at him intently.

"Got it?" The bear grumbled.

"Y-Yar... I get ye..." Foxy whimpered, flattening his ears sheepishly in defeat as the bear set him loose again, turning his back and wandering haphazardly back down the hallway, one hand trailing along the wall for guidance.

Such a sight to see their once formidable band leader in such a state, barely able to traverse the darkened halls he once loved so much. Foxy whined quietly in thought. What now? Chica and Bonnie were still inactive, there was no night-guard or staff to scare... Would Freddy really bite his nose off... Why was he even thinking of Freddy again?

Foxy shook his head before tilting it to find the bear nowhere in sight. Cautiously exiting the hallway, he found said bear among the tables, shifting the party hats into place along with several of the chairs. He'd been nothing if not a perfectionist, often taking his anger on the night-guard if anything seemed out of place. One such memory sprung to mind of when Freddy's microphone went missing... The poor night guard didn't stand a chance. Of course, things weren't quite the guard's fault all the time. On that instance, Freddy had in fact dropped his fabled microphone whereupon it had rolled under the curtains of the stage... Yeaaaah...

"Fred?"

Freddy paid no attention until the particular hat he was working with had been properly straightened, at which point... He simply turned to the next one.

Foxy sighed, folding his arms before purposely flicking his tail to the side, knocking a hat to the floor, getting Freddy's full attention.

"Wh-Hey! I'd just- They have to be all in their-" Freddy closed his eyes, grumbling to himself before looking at the Fox. "What, what do you want?"

Foxy grinned. Although the bear could be scary at times, it was always a funny sight to see his little outbursts. They were... Kind of cute.

"No'thin' much... Be needin' somethin' ta pass the time be all..." Foxy looked up at the lights, pretending to pay no attention as he flicked his tail again, sending two more hats to the floor.

Freddy grumbled, glaring at the fox as he wandered over, bending to pick up the hats, continuing to grumble in what Foxy could only think of as a cutely aggitated sound.

"Freddy~" He called.

The bear sighed as he stood up straight again, rather po-faced as he eyed the Fox again.

"Yes Foxy..."

Foxy grinned before poking the bear on the nose and bolting down the hallway... The wrong hallway... CLANG!.

Freddy couldn't help but smirk at the sound as he began making his way over, sure enough to find the Fox sat on his rump, rubbing his nose with a scowl at the metal door, which by now surely had a dent or two.

Going simply by a rouch outline of a shadow before him, Freddy grasped the Fox once more before pinning him to the wall with a devious grin as Foxy wriggled and whined in protest. What happened next, Foxy partly expected but... Not entirely...

The bear pressed his face near Foxys' before biting his nose, staring into Foxy's golden eyes which were filled with a hint of fear as well as something more. Curiousity perhaps? Freddy bit down a little harder, eliciting a whine from the other before he slipped his hand to Foxy's side, trailing his claws heavily through the fur, his eyes staring, studying, taking in every reaction from the Fox. He could barely see but he knew well enough from hearing Foxy whine... Feeling him shiver... He was... Enjoying-

No. It wasn't right.

Freddy released Foxy from his grip before turning his back and leaning against the wall. "Go on... Go... GO!" The bear roared.

Half-confused and, admittedly, disappointed, Foxy bolted once more, followed shortly after by Freddy who merely shambled along the hallway, giving a glance to the cove upon reaching the dining-hall where Foxy, peeked from behind the curtain, tilting his head.

Freddy merely shook his in return before turning right to enter the kitchen.


End file.
